JoAnn Schuch and Lynne Canning have directed an unflinching look at Humboldt County's marijuana tradition. Tricky Bidness largely focuses on the explosion of indoor grow-ops in Arcata.
None of the interviewees in this 69-minute pot doc are well-known outside of California's Lost Coast. The directors speak to city council reps, lawyers, fire fighters, growers, patients, contractors and other locals. Most agree that marijuana has been good for the area's economy. They also think that the proliferation of the grow houses is destroying the tight-knit cannabis community. Many are run by outsiders. The houses often suffer damage and mold, and worse, fires break out due to bad wiring.
The solution, according to Arcata Eye editor Kevin Hoover, is legalization. "That's where we need to go for any a number of reasons," he says. "The harmful part about it is all the crime and the guns, the enforcement, and the societal conflict that's set up because of these absurd laws."
Tricky Bidness will be screened at the Santa Cruz Film Festival (Nov. 7-10). Watch the entire movie here and the trailer below.
